1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to retractable awnings and more particularly to an improved rafter adapted to prevent the canopy portion of the awning from sagging.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Retractable awnings may take numerous forms and have been designed for permanent mounting on fixed vertical surfaces such as over doors or windows of a building structure and have also been designed for mounting on movable objects such as recreational vehicles, mobile homes or the like. In the latter case, the awnings typically include a canopy that is secured along an inner edge to a supporting external wall of the vehicle and along an opposite parallel edge to a roll bar such that as the roll bar is moved away from the supporting surface, the canopy of the awning is extended. Similarly, movement of the roll bar toward the supporting surface causes the awning to roll about the roll bar into a storage position adjacent to the supporting surface. Support arms and rafters are typically utilized at opposite ends of the roll bar to bridge the space between the supporting surface and the roll bar thereby selectively bracing the awning in its extended condition.
One problem with retractable awnings of the aforenoted type, which particularly exists with relatively long awnings of 18 feet or more, resides in the fact that the roll bar will tend to bow inwardly toward the supporting surface allowing the canopy to sag. To remove the bow, reinforcing rafters have been employed in the prior art to bridge the space between the roll bar and the supporting surface at approximately a midpoint along the length of the roll bar but the rafters have been troublesome for various reasons. Rafters of this type have traditionally been individual items which need to be installed by an operator each time they are used or they have been pivotally attached at one end to the supporting surface so as to be extendable away from the surface to engage and brace the roll bar. Rafters of this type are usually mechanically and longitudinally extensible so that they can be made to press laterally against the roll bar and actually remove the bow from the roll bar. One drawback with prior art systems of this type is that in use of a rafter, for example, that is independent of the vehicle and the awning, it must be stored in the vehicle when not in use. In the case of rafters which are pivotally connected to the vehicle, they are normally stored on the side of the vehicle where they are aesthetically displeasing.
It is also worthy to mention that awnings of the type that are mounted on the side of a recreational vehicle or the like can usually be supported in at least two different conditions with one condition existing when the support arms have their lower ends attached to the side of the vehicle and another condition when the lower ends of the support arms rest upon the ground immediately beneath the ends of the roll bar. Normally, when moving the support arms between the two afore-described conditions, the elevation of the roll bar changes as does the distance between the roll bar and the side of the vehicle so that any rafter arm extending between the roll bar and the side of the vehicle must be adjusted in length. While most rafter arms have the capability of being longitudinally adjusted to accommodate such a circumstance, the longitudinal adjustment is normally made manually through use of a lever arm or the like and therefore requires additional time and patience.
It is to overcome the shortcomings in the prior art that the present invention has been developed.